“We will teach our principles—the principles of the Founding and of Lincoln, to anyone—red state or blue state.” That’s the message of Michael Pack, the new president of the Claremont Institute, a bastion of conservative thought in Claremont, CA.
Pack comes to the job from a brilliant career as a documentary filmmaker whose recent credits include an acclaimed film about Adm. Hyman Rickover, and the upcoming The Last 600 Meters, about the battles for Najaf and Fallujah in Iraq.
Pack’s job is simple, but tough: bringing Claremont’s ideas and timely message to a broader audience, using both new and traditional media. He started the job on Mar. 1 and told Breitbart News that his first task is creating a strategic plan.
“All media are on the table, including film,” he said. He hopes to bring his storytelling expertise to task, noting that his film background dovetails well with his mission at Claremont–though adding that he is also open to ideas from others in media.
Pack replaces outgoing president Brian Kennedy–a friend of Breitbart California since its launch last April, and a respected thinker. His job, Pack says, is to add to Kennedy’s work–“rethinking, without sacrificing or changing,” he explains.
In a statement, Claremont Board Chairman Tom Klingenstein noted that Pack, who has been associated with the Claremont Institute for 25 years, deeply appreciates the work of its research fellows. “He understands that our fellows are our greatest asset because they’re the ones putting ideas into practice every day,” said Klingenstein, adding that Pack’s filmmaking “has always been informed by Claremont’s understanding of America’s founding principles and history.”
For now, Pack says, he’s focused on “absorbing what Claremont does” on a daily basis before crafting his strategy. Though his audience is national rather than local, one thing is certain: in a deep-blue state, Pack’s insights are needed, urgently.